DHS Financial Assistance

Financial Assistance Overview

Most DHS Components have authority to execute and manage financial assistance to support the DHS mission. Financial assistance is the transfer to a non-Federal recipient of anything of value for a public purpose, and in DHS includes grants, cooperative agreements, training, loans, direct payments, and National flood insurance.

BackgroundAlthough most DHS Components possess some grant-making programs, the majority of programs and funding exists within the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). DHS supports a wide variety of financial assistance including post-disaster relief and resilience, preparedness, boating safety, cybersecurity, research, university centers of excellence, and assistance to fire fighters. The chart below reflects the distribution of financial assistance activity and funding by DHS mission.

Financial Assistance Policy and Oversight (FAPO)

FAPO is within the DHS Office of the Chief Financial Officer, Undersecretary of Management. The office is the functional lead for the Financial Assistance Line of Business. FAPO is responsible for providing oversight, to include the issuance of policy, for all DHS financial assistance programs. The team works with DHS Components to ensure a "One DHS" approach for financial assistance. The Office consists of four units; Information Management and Reporting, Financial Assistance Policy, Financial Assistance Oversight and Strategic Support.

Find and Apply for Financial Assistance

Grants.gov is the source to find and apply for federal financial assistance. DHS utilizes Grants.gov to post funding opportunities. There is a five step registration process for Grants.gov that may take up to three weeks to complete. Grants.gov is the federal wide system utilized by government agencies. Registering with Grants.gov enables you to apply for financial assistance opportunities at other federal agencies.

Financial Assistance Resources

Catalog for Domestic Assistance (CFDA) provides a full listing of all Federal programs available to State and local governments, federally-recognized Indian tribal governments; Territories (and possessions) of the United States; domestic public, quasi- public, and private profit and nonprofit organizations and institutions; specialized groups; and individuals.

Uniform Guidance

Click on the link below to view the joint interim final rule implements for all Federal award-making agencies the final guidance Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles, and Audit Requirements for Federal Awards (Uniform Guidance) published by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) on December 26, 2013.

DHS Financial Assistance LifecycleThere are four phases to issuing financial assistance awards; Pre-Award, Award, Post-Award and Closeout. The chart depicts the main steps in each of the four phases.DHS Financial Assistance Lifecycle(PDF, 1 page - 396 KB)